Has anyone done Lyft/Uber or Amazon driving?

[vicky]

I'm just curious.
What were your experiences?
If you haven't, would you ever?

[googled]

I've driven for Uber. I don't think it's worth it unless you do it full time. They basically make you jump through hoops to get the guaranteed rates, the app crashes constantly during peak times, they don't even have the app on the App Store so it doesn't update automatically, which means you get out there to drive and suddenly it's blocking you from logging on until you spend 30 minutes updating. After the cost of gas, the cost to detail your car every once in a while, etc....just not worth it for a part time gig IMO.

[sarahsays]

I haven't and I wouldn't because I hate to drive.

[sapphireblue]

I haven't but my boyfriend's brother started driving for both Lyft and Uber recently.

He doesn't really have another job, he does odd jobs and collects rental income from some properties he owns so he has a pretty free schedule.

He said that Uber barely wanted anything from him to have him start driving, Lyft ran more checks on him (from the perspective of a rider I thought that was interesting).

He had a day recently where he worked about 8 hours and gave a lot of rides and made about $300 if I am remembering correctly.

Most drives were very short distances around the city, although he recently did have someone who wanted him to drive them from Providence to Boston (which is about an hour away).

[Deleted]

My husband drives for Lyft when his photography is slow. He likes it. He finds he makes the most money taking people to work, taking people to the bar, taking them back to their cars in the morning and airport runs during busy times. I know most drivers drive for both Uber and Lyft. We live in suburbia and Lyft is really the only service out there. In the city centers it is easier to get an Uber. I was just in San Fran and Ubered everywhere. I imagine in your neighborhood you could make some good $. Especially with airport and bar runs.

[jigsy]

I drove for Uber. I am actually considering continuing to do so strictly for the tax benefit I saw with my 2016 return.

The hardest part for me was getting motivated to actually get in my car and go. Once I was on the road, it was fine. I think I only had one day where rides were few and far between - living in LA has that advantage, I was always busy, and often had surge prices. There were times where my pay worked out to be around $15/hour, but more often it was closer to $25-$30/hour.

I like that you can do it for exactly the amount of time you want...one ride or ten. One hour or three...its up to you.

I did read some articles about how the real amount you make is much lower after considering the expenses, but I don't know if you can really break it down like that.

As an anecdote - When I started my taxes, I just entered my regular income/deductions for this year. With just that, I owed about $600. Then I added all my uber stuff - my income, plus my business expenses. After all said and done, because my business deductions netted out to be more than my income, my tax liability dropped and I ended up getting $100 refunded instead of owing.
I took moderate deductions - mileage, addl insurance costs, phone costs, cost for water (which, to be honest, I drank most of it because most passengers don't want it), and a few other things here and there. I know some people really stretch it - home offices and whatnot, which I chose not to.

Anyways...overall, I don't mind it. I was able to make pretty quick money easily, which was nice. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. Maybe I can look up on of my weekly reports so you can see exactly how it can look if you work x amount of hours on x amounts of days...

[moolarkey]

The brother of a friend drives for Uber. He has 4 kids and his wife is in nursing school. He says it really helps, he is able to drive at peak times such as before/after sports events, concerts and that sort of thing. He parks, at a shopping center lot or somewhere free, reasonably near the activity which means he can pick up quickly and that is something people look at when choosing their Uber drive.

I know of another man, has a great job but has 5 daughters, 2 in college and 3 in private school. He has no retirement, all his money from driving goes into his retirement.

I know of another woman that drives only when her kids are in school. She is very out-going and is very popular, has a lot of what I would call regular riders. She is also popular with tourists because she knows everything going on around the area. She makes good money but also does it for the human connection because the rest of the day she is with youngish kids.

I flew to Boston this summer and then Ubered to Providence, RI. It was much cheaper than flying to Providence. It worked perfectly, I also Ubered back to Boston to fly home. I loved it. I did confirm both drivers were ok with a longer distance drive and they were.

[katb]

We just bought a new car so I seriously was looking into it. I don't have a student right now, the kids are in school and I have two free days of the week - plus I live 10 miles away from an international airport. I looked into lyft and I would have to submit my driving record, take my car into an inspection for them, and do a trial run with one of their mentors. Uber I believe wanted my driving record and pictures of my car.

I'm still considering it - I'm just scared to actually pull the trigger. (but I should do it very soon because summer vacation will be here soon)

[jigsy]

Ok - so here is a breakdown of one of the weeks I worked. I was trying to get as much extra money as possible (while still enjoying my life) for my trip to Scotland. It wasn't a holiday week or anything. Rides were pretty average in my opinion. I'll post my adily earnings for the week, then I'll show you a breakdown of the highest earning day. I worked 4pm-6pm most of these days.
Daily Earnings
MON - $39.34
TUE - $30.63
WED - $37.18
THU - $20.45

4:08pm - 9m 17s - $2.45
4:31pm - 7m 22s - $2.54
4:39pm - 8m 21s - $2.54
4:53pm - 46m 19s - $14.80
5:44pm - 44m 46s - $14.85

If you do sign up, make sure to use a referral code (I can PM you mine for uber if you'll use it). You will get a sign on bonus for being referred, as will the person who referred you. If you don't use a referral link, you won't get a bonus. If you don't use mine, use someones (people post them all over the internet). I am mad that I lost out on $$ just because I went through the Uber site directly. The bonus is dependant on the demand for drivers in your location - here in LA it is usually $500 for the new driver and the referrer. So free money - I think you have to complete a certain number of rides, or hours, but I'll be honest, they aren't super clear on the rules/how much

[muffin0]

Mar 23, 2017 21:17:27 GMT -5 katb said:

We just bought a new car so I seriously was looking into it. I don't have a student right now, the kids are in school and I have two free days of the week - plus I live 10 miles away from an international airport. I looked into lyft and I would have to submit my driving record, take my car into an inspection for them, and do a trial run with one of their mentors. Uber I believe wanted my driving record and pictures of my car.

I'm still considering it - I'm just scared to actually pull the trigger. (but I should do it very soon because summer vacation will be here soon)

They don't even need actual car pictures. My H signed up because he was looking into a new Kia and they had a $1000 rebate.

He was approved in like 2 days

[macmars45]

No. I don't like to drive and don't drive on freeways.

[Jalapeñomel]

Mar 23, 2017 19:53:14 GMT -5 jigsy said:

I drove for Uber. I am actually considering continuing to do so strictly for the tax benefit I saw with my 2016 return.

The hardest part for me was getting motivated to actually get in my car and go. Once I was on the road, it was fine. I think I only had one day where rides were few and far between - living in LA has that advantage, I was always busy, and often had surge prices. There were times where my pay worked out to be around $15/hour, but more often it was closer to $25-$30/hour.

I like that you can do it for exactly the amount of time you want...one ride or ten. One hour or three...its up to you.

I did read some articles about how the real amount you make is much lower after considering the expenses, but I don't know if you can really break it down like that.

As an anecdote - When I started my taxes, I just entered my regular income/deductions for this year. With just that, I owed about $600. Then I added all my uber stuff - my income, plus my business expenses. After all said and done, because my business deductions netted out to be more than my income, my tax liability dropped and I ended up getting $100 refunded instead of owing.
I took moderate deductions - mileage, addl insurance costs, phone costs, cost for water (which, to be honest, I drank most of it because most passengers don't want it), and a few other things here and there. I know some people really stretch it - home offices and whatnot, which I chose not to.

Anyways...overall, I don't mind it. I was able to make pretty quick money easily, which was nice. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. Maybe I can look up on of my weekly reports so you can see exactly how it can look if you work x amount of hours on x amounts of days...

Are you considered an independent contractor?

[Jalapeñomel]

Mar 23, 2017 20:53:50 GMT -5 Catlawdy said:

Mar 23, 2017 19:17:30 GMT -5 sapphireblue said:

He said that Uber barely wanted anything from him to have him start driving, Lyft ran more checks on him (from the perspective of a rider I thought that was interesting).

An Uber driver told me the same thing, that the process to get approved for Lyft required more checks and a test drive.

So what you're saying is that err on the side of Lyft.

[jigsy]

Mar 24, 2017 20:29:41 GMT -5 Jalapeñomel said:

Mar 23, 2017 19:53:14 GMT -5 jigsy said:

I drove for Uber. I am actually considering continuing to do so strictly for the tax benefit I saw with my 2016 return.

The hardest part for me was getting motivated to actually get in my car and go. Once I was on the road, it was fine. I think I only had one day where rides were few and far between - living in LA has that advantage, I was always busy, and often had surge prices. There were times where my pay worked out to be around $15/hour, but more often it was closer to $25-$30/hour.

I like that you can do it for exactly the amount of time you want...one ride or ten. One hour or three...its up to you.

I did read some articles about how the real amount you make is much lower after considering the expenses, but I don't know if you can really break it down like that.

As an anecdote - When I started my taxes, I just entered my regular income/deductions for this year. With just that, I owed about $600. Then I added all my uber stuff - my income, plus my business expenses. After all said and done, because my business deductions netted out to be more than my income, my tax liability dropped and I ended up getting $100 refunded instead of owing.
I took moderate deductions - mileage, addl insurance costs, phone costs, cost for water (which, to be honest, I drank most of it because most passengers don't want it), and a few other things here and there. I know some people really stretch it - home offices and whatnot, which I chose not to.

Anyways...overall, I don't mind it. I was able to make pretty quick money easily, which was nice. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. Maybe I can look up on of my weekly reports so you can see exactly how it can look if you work x amount of hours on x amounts of days...

Are you considered an independent contractor?

Yes. They will send out a 1099.

I also did have to have my vehicle inspected for uber. No driving test.

[VillainV]

Just curious for anyone who drives -- do you feel safe? Especially as a woman? I have heard that some drivers arm themselves while driving, and wonder if this is the norm or if it's an exception.

[anyastroud]

.

[jigsy]

Mar 25, 2017 9:03:10 GMT -5 anyastroud said:

^{I don't know about driving for them. I do sell car insurance though. None of the companies  I work with cover it. You need some sort of comm'l auto insurance. Comm'l insuracr is $$$$ Your personal auto policy does not cover for this sort of thing.} 

That's not really true.

My carrier (usaa) has a special endorsement to cover you while your between rides/pick ups. Once a passenger is in the car, uber/lyft has insurance to cover you. The endorsement is about $4/month.

I also work in insurance, and there are plenty of carriers we work with that would accept a driver with this risk.

As for safety, i have never felt unsafe. I only drive in early evenings on weekdays (so lots of people heading home from work, going to dinner, etc) and usually mornings/early afternoons on weekends. I wouldn't drive the late night drunk crowds because of safety and also i wouldnt want to deal with drunk people, lol.

[pagas]

I really want to in the mountains where the minimum fare is $12. No one is going terribly far and you can really make a ton (per my scientific survey of every Uber driver I have ever ridden with there.) UberSki is $17 minimum...for a 5 to 10 minute ride, this is amazing.

[vicky]

I have a month to kill after April 10. I am past my stranger danger anxiety lol.

I might be happier with UberEATS or amazon lol.

[pagas]

Mar 25, 2017 12:03:59 GMT -5 vicky said:

I have a month to kill after April 10. I am past my stranger danger anxiety lol.

I might be happier with UberEATS or amazon lol.

Do you have Shipt or Instacart in your area?  That might be more up your alley.

[jigsy]

What about postmates?
Ubereats isnt seperate from uber - you cant choose to do one or the other

[moolarkey]

Mar 25, 2017 12:17:58 GMT -5 jigsy said:

What about postmates?
Ubereats isnt seperate from uber - you cant choose to do one or the other

Yes you can.  You can drive passengers, you can do Uber eats or you can do uber package delivery. You do not have to do all 3 (all 3 are not offered everywhere), you can choose which you do.  I'm related to an Uber marketing person and we've had this discussion.

[jigsy]

Mar 25, 2017 12:23:26 GMT -5 moolarkey said:

Mar 25, 2017 12:17:58 GMT -5 jigsy said:

What about postmates?
Ubereats isnt seperate from uber - you cant choose to do one or the other

Yes you can.  You can drive passengers, you can do Uber eats or you can do uber package delivery. You do not have to do all 3 (all 3 are not offered everywhere), you can choose which you do.  I'm related to an Uber marketing person and we've had this discussion.

Ok, well, id love you to be able to tell me or any of the uber reps here in LA how, because the only way ive been told how to not take ubereats is by rejecting the rides when they pop up, which messes with your ratings.

[SugarKane]

Mar 25, 2017 12:12:54 GMT -5 pagas said:

Mar 25, 2017 12:03:59 GMT -5 vicky said:

I have a month to kill after April 10. I am past my stranger danger anxiety lol.

I might be happier with UberEATS or amazon lol.

Do you have Shipt or Instacart in your area?  That might be more up your alley.

Lurker here, but I work (independent contractor, really)  for in.sta.cart.  I can answer whatever questions you have.  

[yourmother]

I have a question for Lyft drivers. Are you able to tell which customers tipped you and how much they tipped? Also, are you able to tell which customers rated you poorly?

jigsy,

[MadamePresident]

Mar 25, 2017 19:53:51 GMT -5 SugarKane said:

Mar 25, 2017 12:12:54 GMT -5 pagas said:

Do you have Shipt or Instacart in your area?  That might be more up your alley.

Lurker here, but I work (independent contractor, really)  for in.sta.cart.  I can answer whatever questions you have.  

Are you paid per trip or by the amount of groceries?
What kind is the application process like?
Do you do it all yourself - shopping and delivery?

[jigsy]

Mar 25, 2017 22:13:07 GMT -5 yourmother said:

I have a question for Lyft drivers. Are you able to tell which customers tipped you and how much they tipped? Also, are you able to tell which customers rated you poorly?

jigsy,

I don't drive for lyft, so i cant speak to the tips.

On uber, you cant really tell who rates you at what, but it does tell you how many 5* ratings you get

[SugarKane]

Mar 25, 2017 22:28:47 GMT -5 MadamePresident said:

Mar 25, 2017 19:53:51 GMT -5 SugarKane said:

Lurker here, but I work (independent contractor, really)  for in.sta.cart.  I can answer whatever questions you have.  

Are you paid per trip or by the amount of groceries?
What kind is the application process like?
Do you do it all yourself - shopping and delivery?

You get paid a small base for every order and then a 40 cent per item fee.  Does that make sense?  So if an order has 10 items and the base is $4, I'll get paid $8 from IC. I see that you're in STL.  That zone just recently opened and it's pretty slow going, but there's an hourly guarantee although I'm not sure what it is.  

It's been a while since I've applied, but I thought the app was kind of a joke.  It might have changed since then.  

Yup, I'm called a full service shopper so I shop and deliver.  Some markets have in-store shoppers and they're actually employees of in.sta.cart ,but after they've shopped the order, a full service shopper has to pick it up and deliver.  Everyone hates delivery only orders and luckily my zone doesn't have them.  

I'll say that if you're curious if it's for you, apply and see what happens.  You literally have nothing to lose and the company treats you really well the first few weeks.